


Sand

by sluttyeren



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Angst, Gen, I am so sorry, Sadness, just so very sorry
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-03-05
Updated: 2014-03-05
Packaged: 2018-01-14 15:03:51
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 569
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1270867
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sluttyeren/pseuds/sluttyeren
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Prompt from tumblr, Eren and sand. This is a lot sadder than it should have been read with tissues next to you.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Sand

The smell of the ocean was harsh in his nose, an unfamiliar briny smell that he thought would take him some time to get used to. The sand was gritty and uncomfortable under his feet, he was too used to hard brick or soft, forgiving soil. He wiggled his toes, hating the way the grains sifted between them and stuck. He felt them there with every step he took, slowly moving along the expanse of the beach with the hot sun beating down against his neck. For as uncomfortable as he felt, he was smiling. It was beautiful, even if it wasn’t comfortable. The orange glare of the sun reflecting off the choppy surface of the water, the rolling dunes of sand, miles and miles of uninterrupted hills. His eyes scanned all around him, over and over, drinking in every inch of the sight before him. The white foam crashing against the shore, where he walked to. He stood ankle-deep in the water, smile growing wider as the cool water lapped around him, retreating back out again with the surge of the ocean’s waves. Beautiful. He ran a hand through his hair, wrinkling his nose at the coarse texture it had taken on from being exposed to the salty air and wind. He was alone, and he liked it that way. He could take in everything around him in peace, quiet. Eren reached his hand down, crouching to scoop up a handful of the sand at his feet. It was wet, and it packed together strangely instead of running like liquid through his fingers the way it did when it was dry. It was odd to him, how it behaved. He fell to his knees, piling up the sand and patting it into place, laughing at the little mound he created. He stood up again, stepping on it and squishing the wet pile under his foot. Much better than the hot, dry grains of sand from the rest of the beach. He folded up the hems of his pants until they were tight up around his knees and then waded out, wonder coloring his face as the current licked around him, the push and pull of the water a soothing force. He went out as far as he could until the edge of his pants got wet anyway and he stopped, turning in place and taking everything in again. The sun was lower in the sky already, and the air was cooler and less humid now. He smiled. Reaching into his pocket, he pulled out the little relic of the past that he had held onto for all this time. His smile never faded, only turned sadder, more somber. He turned the little thing over in his hand, running his thumb over it while he took a moment to remember everything it meant.

He dropped the little patch, watching the rippling water carry it away from him slowly. It was quiet except the rushing noises of the water and the steady flow of wind whipping around him. He kept his eyes glued to it until it drifted out of sight, too far out over the surf for him to see it anymore.

“Look, Armin, we made it” he whispered to the sea, letting the sun set and the tide go down. Finally he turned and walked back up the line of the shore, sand sticking to his wet legs.


End file.
